>> EDUCATION
On Sept. 7, the Georgia Farmto- School Alliance held its first in-person gathering in nearly three years. Baldwin was chosen as the meeting place because of the work various organizations have done to promote the connection between agriculture and education throughout the Baldwin County School District.
Representatives from the United States Department of Agriculture, Food Corps, Department of Early Childcare and Learning, Georgia Department of Education, local farmers and many others boarded buses outside of Baldwin High School before taking a tour of some of the district’s school gardens. Afterward, everyone came together for a special luncheon prepared by students in the Baldwin High School culinary arts program, with many vegetables taken from its own garden. There were remarks from Georgia Power and Georgia College representatives as well.
What began as a single garden at the high school has extended to every Baldwin County District school and made a major impact on the motivation of students who see it as an opportunity to work outdoors.
“For some students, just like sports or the fine arts, coming to work in the garden is their motivation for coming to school,” said Dr. Noris Price, superintendent.
Baldwin County has been aggressive in its pursuit of grant funding and programming options for their students in agriculture, owing much of its success to the works of School Nutrition Director Susan Nelson and Wellness Coordinator Aketi Mayweather.
“When I got here in 2018, there was no vegetable garden,” Mayweather said during her presentation before the Alliance, “Oak Hill Middle school had a couple of raised beds but there was nothing planted in them. Now, all seven of our schools have gardens, including our satellite site at Georgia College Early College.
We have row gardens at three of our schools, as well as three greenhouses, which will house our aquaponics growing system.”
The Georgia Farm-to-School Alliance is a network that joins statewide agencies working in food, farming and nutrition to coalesce resources and support for farm to school, and to create a dialogue for building statewide programming. The Alliance also hosts the annual Georgia Farm-to-School Summit.